Alloy and method of making same



Patented Mar. 5, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN V. O. PALM, OI HEIGHTS, OHIO, A SSIGNOB TO THE CLEVELAND GRAPHITE BRONZE COMPANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, A CORPORATION 01' OHIO.

ALLOY AND IETHOD OF K AKING SAME.

Io Drawing. a

5 be less expensive than the usual better grades of babbit, and shall be very much more satisfactory and have improved qualities over the less expensive and poorer grades of bai -bitt which are now used in very large quantities. A further object of the invention is the provision of a bearing metal which shall be high in lead content, as it is well known that lead is an ideal bearing metal, barring its softness, which I have been able to avoid in the present alloy. A further object of the invention is the provision of an improved method for producing an alloy having very desirable characteristics and containing a large amount of lead, and smaller amounts of zinc, tin, aluminum, copper and antimony. To the accomplishment of the foregoing and replated ends, said invention, then, consists of the means hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims.

The following description sets forth in detail one method and one roduct exemplifying my invention, such disclosed procedure and product constituting, however, but one of various applications of the principle of my invention.

In producing my improved alloy I first mix lead, copper and tin, and melt the same to gether to form an alloy of these metals. Lead has been found to mix with tin and antimony j in any proportions, although it cannot be mixed with zinc directly, or with aluminum. This.mixture gives What I believe to be a solid solution of tin and antimony in lead, the proportions of tin and antimony being relatively small compared to the lead.

I next melttogether zinc, aluminum and copper in fairly equivalent proportions and these metals are found to alloy with each other and to produce a metal which is relatively homogeneous.

I next melt together the alloys produced by each of the first two steps, that is, the alloy consisting of lead, tin and antimony and the alloy consisting of zinc, aluminum and copper, and when so mixed in this order all of these metals are held in suspension and there Application ma December 10, 1925. Serial No. 74,815.

is no segregation and separation of any of the metals, the result being a homogeneous alloy consisting principally of lead, with very much smaller parts of copper, zinc, tin, antimony and aluminum.

It will be understood that the exact proportions of the various metals may be varied to vary the properties of the final alloy to adapt it to different uses and conditions, but I have found that a very satisfactory alloy can be made consisting by weight of 82 parts of lead, 9 parts of tin, 4 parts of antimony, 3 parts of zinc, 1 parts of copper and of one part of aluminum. The alloy thus produced is somewhat softer than the present high grade Babbitt metal and is of a light color, and has been found to be entirely satisfactory for hearing purposes.

;Other forms may be employed embodying the features of my inventlon instead of the one here explained, change being made in the form or construction, provided the elements stated by any of the following claims or the equivalent of such stated elements be employed, whether produced by my preferred method or by others embed mg steps equivalent to those stated in the 0 lowing claims.

I therefore particularly point out and dis ti nctly claim as my invention 1. An alloy of approximately the composition; lead 32%, tin 9%, antimony 4%, zinc 3%, copper 1 and aluminum 70, by weight.

2. In a methodof making a lead bearing metal, the steps which consist in separately forming an alloy of lead, tin and antimony in which the lead predominates, and an alloy of copper, zinc and aluminum, and then forming a composite alloy of said two separate allo 's.

32111 a mehod of making a lead bearing metal, the steps which consist of separately forming alloys of lead and a harder metal capable of, alloying therewith, the lead predominating, and an alloy of zinc, copper and aluminum,and then forming a composite al- 10y of said two separate alloys.

9signed by me, this 8th day of December, 1 5. 

